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Knitting bag, part II June 23, 2008
The mailman dropped my clips in my mailbox today, so I will work on my knitting bag and one of R’s sundresses. I need to ask her which one she wants me to make first.
I want to start making socks, and will probably have socks on the go while doing other projects, so I made myself a little lined pouch to keep my socks separate from my other project. I used these awesome instructions.
I’m off to sew my bag now!
Yoga socks April 9, 2008
Jenn, the bendy yoga goddess, lives in the land of ice and snow. I figured she could use a pair of yoga socks to keep her feet warm while she’s doing the bendy thing, so when I found a pattern for yoga socks, I thought she needed them.
I didn’t like some aspects of the pattern, and figured that it couldn’t possibly be THAT hard to make up my own pattern, so I used one of the patterns I found as a guide and started these. They’re not done. In fact, I’m only half-way through the first sock, but I had to take a break to make the baby sweater, so they’ve been hibernating. When I finish my current project, I’ll pick these up again and finish them.
The yarn is a colourway from KnitPicks called Tucson Multi. It is really nice and soft, and very springy.
Baby sweater April 9, 2008
I don’t think my sister-in-law reads this. I don’t think she even knows about it. Anyway, I think it is pretty safe to post a picture of the sweater I sent for her baby. She should have the baby any day now.
I used this pattern, and there were errors so I got stuck for a bit. Plus some parts weren’t as straightforward as I thought they should be, so I made modifications. I also didn’t want to put a zipper in the sweater. I hope she likes it and it keeps the baby warm next winter.
Baby cable calorimetry April 9, 2008
One of my knitting buddies commented a while back on how cute a calorimetry would be if it was cabled, so I figured what the heck? I don’t have a picture of it on, but it is adorable. It almost makes me wish it was colder outside. I just need a pretty button.
And a closeup of the cables…
A taste of upholstery fun April 9, 2008
First, let me say that using a tiny stubby screwdriver in cramped quarters is hard on your hands. Add that to the fact that there were 6 screws per chair, and you’ll understand why I only did 2 chairs today. I picked up vinyl today to redo our kitchen chairs since I have two grubby children who don’t think about where they put their hands when they’re eating. I’m not keen on vinyl seats, but what else can you do? Besides, by the time they’re old enough not to need vinyl seats, the furniture will need replacing anyway.
Turns out I bought twice as much vinyl as I need too. I wonder what else I can do with it. I will eventually find some nice matching fabric for placemats. Our red ones will go wonderfully at Christmastime, and I guess the navy ones will look fine, but we’ve had them ever since we got married, so it is time for new ones.
Anyway, our dining area is right beside our living room so I figured green is the way to go given that our sofa is green. This picture is one chair with the original fabric upholstery (which doesn’t look very grubby in the picture but it is so stained and dingy that I am embarrassed by these chairs) and one with the new vinyl. The other chairs will be done eventually.
Pardon the stray shoes and bits of train track. It just makes it more real since I’m always tripping over that stuff.
Branching out – completed April 9, 2008
I finished Jenn’s Branching out scarf. I’m pretty pleased with it, and she seems to like it. She said it was “jaunty”. I can live with that!
In dire need of an update April 9, 2008
Get ready for some blog spamming. It’s been quite a while since I updated this thing, and I’ve been crafting like a madwoman. Okay, maybe not like a madwoman given that I haven’t actually completed all that many projects, but some of them were pretty involved.
And now for something completely different March 20, 2008
I’ve been sewing for more than half my life, but one thing I’ve never done is upholstery. I’ve done cushions, quilts & drapes, but never have I actually put fabric ON a piece of furniture. Well, that’s about to change. I got a lovely, comfortable chair for free about a year ago, and we love it for storytime with the kiddos. The only problem is that the previous owner’s cats totally shredded it, so it has a really ugly slipcover on it. I hate slipcovers. They need to be adjusted every time you get up since sitting on them makes them look sloppy.
Since we’ve had the chair for a year and we’re sure we want to keep it, I’ve decided to give it a facelift. Here it is in all its clawed glory…
Now I just need to find some upholstery websites, add up my measurements, and figure out how many yards of fabric this is going to require. Should be fun!
Dye, yarn, dye!!! February 12, 2008
Bad pun. Okay.
Anyhow, I have extra Shine Sport leftover from Branching Out, so I thought I’d try kool-aid dyeing it. KnitPicks has really easy to follow instructions, and none of the colours of Shine Sport really suit Intolerable Cruelty (but I adore the yarn and a wool yarn will make the skirt too hot for the climate here) so I figured I would throw the cherry leftovers in with some grape kool-aid and see how it turns out. I called to ask them about dyeing it myself, and they said they didn’t know how it would work out since they finish the cotton yarn differently than the bare wool yarns, so the dye might take unpredictably. I figured that I should test it with the leftover Shine since there’s not enough of this yarn left to do anything with.
I’m off to zap my yarn again 
